Having Bible knowledge and understanding is great, however if the scriptures are not living and active in our lives, it is all in vain (Hebrews 4:12-13). The life application selections contain thoughts provoking, real life challenges that will prayerfully transform us to be more like Jesus in our spiritual journey. James 1:23-27 challenges us to not just merely listen or read the scriptures, it says “But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.” Do not miss your blessings my friends!
Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce. Then he will fill your barns with grain and your vats will overflow with good wine.
God does not need our wealth! He owns everything that we have. I see this passage as a test of trust and surrender with a promise that the reward of trusting God with everything is that we will have abundant blessings. As you read this passage, do not make the mistake of equating God's overflowing blessings with the definition of this earth blessing. Think of where you were in life before Christ rescued you. Or think about what your life could have been like if Christ did not rescue you and gave you a new purpose. Romans 5:6-8 reads, "You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” You might say, can that passage also relate to earthly wealth? The answer is yes, absolutely! However, we live in a religious era that often deceives many people with the gospel of prosperity, which is a major misconception about God's blessings. We often treat God as we view our worldly invented idol, Santa Claus. If God's blessings were based on us being naughty or good, we would never receive any blessings because there is nothing good about us. The only one who is good is God! Jesus himself understood this fact during his ministry (Mark 10 17-18 & Mathew 19:17). Did you wake up this morning in your right mind, able to walk, breathe on your own, able to use your hands, feet, have a place to stay, etc.? Make a list of your blessings and see what you perceive as part of your routine, there is someone wishing they had a fraction of the gifts you take for granted. Jesus encouraged his disciples to not focus on storing things of this world as possessions but instead to store things that are heavenly bound (Mathew 6:19-21). As you give back a portion of your wealth, whatever wealth might be for you (time, money, talents...etc.) remember your barns are overflowing beyond the expectation of this earthly dwelling! A place ".... where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal."
For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God.
Are you in a season in your life where you find yourself frustrated because life is not happening the way you had hoped and imagined? Every decision we make, big or small, represents a brick that we are adding to the structure of our lives. Our life’s journey is like building a house; therefore, the quality of our materials and our builder's skills and knowledge will determine the outcome of the final product. Who is your chief architect and builder? God is the builder of all things. Would you like to build your house under the guidance of a builder who sees the beginning and the end of your life? God is ready to partner with you in your life’s journey through Jesus Christ if you are willing. Our life structure has a builder whether you realize it or not. Your everyday decision is driven by a goal or ambition. Our life’s goals and ambitions are prone to reflect our sinful nature that is governed by Satan's standards or Spiritual guidance which is governed by God's standards. I recall a period in my life where every decision I made was built with the focus of proving people wrong about my ability to be successful. My traumatic experiences were shaping my life to reflect the flesh instead of the Holy Spirit. As a result, the bricks I was using to build my life were not spiritually healthy. If you look at my life during that period, my sinful bricks were not obvious to the naked eyes. However, my motive in life was driven by anger, bitterness, hunger for status, selfishness, etc. When I decided to allow Jesus to take complete control of the wheel of my life, I began to see the transformation. I had to be willing to let Jesus take over and renew me to God's purpose. My life is no longer guided by my feelings or what others have done to me. The joy, contentment, and freedom that I experience from surrendering my house to God is beyond any description that I can share. If God is not your builder, choose to surrender your life to him as your chief architect. The way we can evaluate if God is our builder, is to ask ourselves who do we go to when making any life decisions, big or small? Is God through the scriptures and prayers your first consultant or advisor?
Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.
How can something so valuable to mankind be so worthless? What is wealth to you? The answer to this question will differ for everyone. This passage prompted me to ponder on the tragic fires that have been going on around the United States and most recently in Hawaii where many people lost their lives and possessions. Imagine where you are in life! What or who in your life do you consider valuable? Wealth does not always equal money or possessions. It could be something or someone that influences your life or things that you have an abundance of, such as money. The families in Maui woke up and found their lives suddenly changed. Although every one of those victims are grieving the loss of lives and things, their recovery through this traumatic experience will be different. Those whose assurance relies on their possessions, whether dead or alive during this tragedy, have lost it all. However, the people who had made Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior, although their journey in this world might be over, their righteousness will reward them deliverance from the final death. Those walking with the Lord who are alive, know that they may have lost their earthly possessions, but their confidence is in God as their provider, and He promised he will never forsake the righteous. There are several examples in the Bible that demonstrate the response from those who understand the value of God's grace in comparison to what this world offers. Jesus understood the value of righteousness and demonstrated how we, as his students must fight against the Devil’s schemes that lead us toward worthless wealth. When the father of deceiver, Satan (Mathew 4:1-11) attempted to offer Jesus what already belonged to God, Jesus confidently stood against the scheme because he knew who the maker and creator of all things is. Another example is Stephen; he was being stoned for his efforts to persuade the Jewish leaders to choose God over their position of wealth and power. The scripture says, “Stephen prayed Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” and he asked the “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” (Acts 7:59-60). Zacheus in Luke 19:1-10 and James/John in Mathew 4:18-20 also grasp the significance of what it means to store up wealth that is valuable to withstand the wrath that life brings. There are many other examples of men and women who gave it all to choose God as their anchor during the storms of life. In contrast, read Mathew 19:16-23 and learn from a man who chose the wealth of this world over surrendering his will to God. Wraths will come. When they do come, who or what do you rely on to deliver you? Wealth of this world or Righteousness?
Not one of all the Lord's good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.
Do you believe that you serve a faithful God? Do you believe in all his promises and live in expectation that they shall manifest as he says? As we read these questions, we can quickly respond, yes, I do? Take a moment to process these simple questions that I believe is one of the cornerstones of our Christian journey. Jesus says, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going." Do you believe no matter where you are in your life that God is working everything out for your good (Romans 8:28)? The book of Joshua taught us that the nation of Israel was made of different tribes which we might call today different countries that are part of one continent or states that are part of one country. The Israelites went through many trials; most of them if not all their trials were invoked by their disobedience against God’s commands. Yet, despite their disobedience and consequences of their actions, God still fulfilled all the promises that he made to their ancestors many years prior. Is your soul steadfast in all circumstances that are happening in your life or the world around you? Let us live our lives knowing and believing our God will finish the good work that he has started (Philippians 1:6). Hebrews 12:1-3, reminds us "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."
God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things---and the things that are not---to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.
I have read this passage throughout my journey with the Lord, but it has never rung so true as when it was being read to me by a young teenage girl on a Sunday afternoon. These scriptures are the opposite of how ministry is built today. In the religious community, the more titles, education, and visible attributes you have behind your names, the more likely you will be chosen to be a leader. This mindset is so opposite of Jesus' ministry. He was born in a humble way and chose lowly people to build his ministry. This passage was read and shared with me by a young girl who is starting her journey with God. You may wonder why the passage spoke to my inner soul that day. During that same week, I was pleading with God about a vision I had after fasting and praying. My plea was God not me! I can't be and do what you are showing me. I went further to list all the weaknesses that I have and all the obstacles that might get in my way. God is a simple God who chooses the least amongst us to display his power. I always pray for God to use me as a vessel for his will. When the Lord does whatever he pleases with my life, I will boast in his mighty name, YAWEH! Knowing it is not by my might and human intelligence but through the power and will of God this has come to life. Our God takes pride in using the people who are considered insignificant to humble the proud, arrogant and the intelligent people of this world. If you are a son or daughter of the Living God, thinking why me, you should ask yourself why not you? Your God, YAWEH, is bigger than any obstacles or imperfections you may have.
"That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction."
If you are a monthly newsletter recipient of our ministry, you will notice Joshua is a huge theme for the month of August. This was not my plan; I simply obeyed where the Spirit of YAWEH sent me. As I read the entire book of Joshua, I can’t escape the thought that we should never mess with God! He sees all and knows all. Just as the Hebrews writer wrote Hebrews 4:13, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” When we are not able to face the many trials in our lives and we feel defeated in every corner, could it be the result of our disobedience or the disobedience of people we associate with? The passage above is God’s response to Joshua for crying out because he felt let down by God. What Joshua did not realize, although he had obeyed God and was faithful, some of his soldiers were not faithful. God might be pleased with us but we might become victims of the consequences of other people's sins around us. Becoming a victim of someone’s offense does not mean you are guilty of any wrongdoing. One might say God's commands to destroy the family from the tribes of Judah who disobeyed him was harsh, however, there is always more to everything you read in one passage. There are many morals to this story but the few that stood out to me are: You can deceive others, but God sees everything; God does not tolerate wickedness. Have you ever thought that other people around you can hinder God's promises and blessings for your life? What in your life do you need to destroy or let go for God to manifest in your life? Read the entire book of Joshua and learn what God did in his life and the people of Israel after the mold that infested their camp was found and destroyed. Ask God to reveal the things and people in your life that you need to remove from your camp and surrender to God through Jesus Christ. This challenge is for everyone who is reading this devotional. Whether you know the Lord or don't know the Lord, we all have things or people that can hinder us from saying yes to Jesus’ call or grow in God's kingdom.
